Elihu Intreats his Elders

Have you ever had someone you just didn’t want to listen to, no matter how good their advice was?

Perhaps its stubbornness that causes this, or perhaps its a bad track record on the part of the person.

The boy who cried wolf

repeatedly fools his village

not listened to

sheep eaten/boy eaten

There is clear biblical instruction on who to listen to and who not to listen to

Psalm 1:1 ESV

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

Proverbs 12:15 ESV

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.

Proverbs 26:20 ESV

For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.

There are also many clear pictures in the Bible on how to speak.

What relates to this passage, as we begin to consider Job’s final friend, Elihu, is the idea of youth vs. age.

1 Timothy 5:1 ESV

Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers,

When we see the speech of Elihu, this principle comes into play.

Seemingly, the other three friends of Job are similar in age. Elihu makes it clear that he is much younger.

1 Timothy 4:12 ESV

Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

Particularly in the culture of Job, to listen to a young man would have never been an option. It would have been social taboo. Elihu even admits it, as he says he waits until the last minute and only speaks because he couldn’t contain himself.

Yet, there are some good things that come from the mouth of this young man.

Paul instructs timothy to set an example. Really, there is a way that a young person wins an audience with his older peers by doing just that. Setting an example, holding a good track record, showing diligence and faithfulness.

And in reality, older individuals are held to the same standard. While there is wisdom and experience that comes with gray hair, we all know gray haired people who have set a “what not to do” example much more than a “what to do” example.

No man’s word is final, but sometimes good council comes from unexpected people. May we be watching for the means the Lord uses to teach us.

Job 32:1 ESV

So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.

Job 31 is essentially a final plea from Job - “If I am guilty, let it be made known clearly, and then I will accept the punishment for my guilt.”

Job’s friends, exhausted and at the end of their rope, give up, because in their minds the only option for Job’s suffering is that it is punishment for sin.

Again, we have to hold that they were wrong, because from the very beginning of the story we know that the reason for suffering is not punishment, it is testing.

Now, I think it is safe to say that Job Himself is wearying also. Job started out wonderfully, and while I can’t say from the text that he dipped into sin in his weariness, because God doesn’t speak to that, we can definitely see that his patience is wearing thin.

So at this point, with these four older men at the end of themselves, Elihu comes on the scene.

Elihu - vs. 1-2

Elihu is interestingly the only friend who gets a real workup on his background. The lineage doesn’t seem to bear any important information to us, but the fact that he gets the stage time tells us that there is at least something worth paying attention to.

Elihu is not perfect. He starts off with anger. Now, it might be righteous anger - I think it is to a point, though he takes it too far by the end.

But, of all the human voices in the book, Elihu seems to be the one that gets the closest to truth.

Sort of like Job, he starts well and ends on more shaky ground, but there are some good reasons to listen to Elihu.

He has examined the whole argument and gives a new perspective.

Job’s friends only focus on punishment

Job focuses on arbitraryness

Elihu sees purpose

Job doesn’t try to rebut him

God doesn’t rebuke him

Elihu’s counsel centers on meaning in suffering for the righteous

what is righteous? perfect?

Job wasn’t perfect. He was righteous, not perfect.

There were lessons to be learned, sharp edges to be smoothed, burrs to he honed.

Pride

Elihu’s Frustration - Vs. 2-5

Elihu is an insightful young man who has been worked up into a tizzy.

Angry at two thigns

Job justified himself rather than God

Job’s friends kept declaring Job as guilty though they could find no wrong

His patience was respectful - vs. 4

gave him time to listen. Waiting for an answer to arise from the argument.

Elihu’s Intreat - Vs. 6-22

Elihu owns his youthfulness, and we see his youthfulness in features of his speech.

he is long-winded

he speaks about himself quite a bit

he is passionate and a bit brash

none of those things make him altogether wrong

A. A Source of Understanding - 6-10

Elihu highlights what Proverbs will so wonderfully highlight later on.

Proverbs 9:10 ESV

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

Job 32:8–9 ESV

But it is the spirit in man, the breath of the Almighty, that makes him understand. It is not the old who are wise, nor the aged who understand what is right.

youthfulness seen in the “all or nothing” attitude

truth seen in the source of understanding

There is great counsel in this for us. Years make us more keen in a practical sense, undoubtedly. But wisdom truly does only come from the fear of the Lord.

Years give us knowledge and some insight, you could say. The Fear of the Lord instructs us on how to use that knowledge.

If the years of our lives are a treasury of building up tools for the trade of life, the fear of the Lord is the instruction that tells us how to make beautiful work with them.

Like the armor of God

We are given tools, listening to God tells us to put them on and use them.

Job’s friends also all or nothing - bad things happen to bad people. But they missed an important caveat - what about when they don’t?

A Sorry Outlook - 11-22

vs. 16-22 is really a long-winded defense of why he had to speak, his youthfulness comes out in this.

But vs. 11-15 is important

He listened

He waited

He observed

He waited some more

He warned

Job 32:13 ESV

Beware lest you say, ‘We have found wisdom; God may vanquish him, not a man.’

Elihu is essentially saying that the friends had admitted defeat.

“Don’t say “we’ve found wisdom.” You have said by your silence that Only God knows.

walking away from an argument, “yeah, we got him” when you know you haven’t.

I want to end with a very practical note.

James 1:19–20 ESV

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

1 Peter 2:22–23 ESV

He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.